4/23/2024 - Barnaby33 wrote:

This is a wine that'll make you think. Not because it catches your attention or hits all the right notes. It's good cab, no question. The question is, is it more than there? I opened this on a lark. On the nose straight napa cab, lots of dark berries and some oak. On the palette balanced, though nothing really noticeable on the finish. Well made, but it just seems to be there. At its price point I can't say I'm disappointed but seldom do I get an ah-hah! I don't know if this will age well, I suspect tolerably so. Is the style intentionally middle of the road? Will the wine evolve into something really interesting I don't have a strong opinion and maybe that's the most interesting thing about it.

4/14/2024 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Second verse, same as the first. Acidic and somewhat maderized.

3/18/2024 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Same note as ROBERTBIERNACKI, "Good but time to drink!"

3/16/2024 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Surprisingly 2 bottles open at church on the same day, the only difference being an hour of air. What a difference that hour made! Instead of a young brutish super Tuscan the first bottle (with more air) laid out lush fruit, appreciable oak and well rounded though still drying tannins. The second bottle was still brutish. Give it some air boys, give it some air!

3/13/2024 - Barnaby33 wrote:

PnP heavily candied on the nose. Ripe prunes, blueberries and girded with hints of baking spice around the edges. On the palette sweet, but drying tannins and while the palette drops off reasonably fast it does so quite evenly. With a few minutes of air the candied nose gives way to some heat and a hint of green, but also some underbrush as it might in a Barolo. It's hard to call this classic. It is a bit hot, and the tannins a bit harsh, but not out of the range of what a Zin can provide. Good, yes, great no. It's no 87 Old Hill!

3/2/2024 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Light on the palette, light on the wallet. With air the tannins really tightened up and the astringency came out. Coming from the Ravera vineyard I'd hoped for more but at $30 for Barolo it's a fair drop for the price.

3/1/2024 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Second bottle same tasting note as the last in early 23. Ready to go for me but this time plenty of bubbles!

2/16/2024 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Pnp with microwave enchiladas (chicken of course) Rich nose of berries. Tannins fully resolved, just stunning. Medium finish, with no hard edges but plenty of life. Probably the best 35 dollars I've spent in a long time. I hesitate to write this note as it'll send a bunch of others in search of what I want to keep to myself.

2/13/2024 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Open for a day, good fruit, but unlike the last tasters note a bit acidic. Still quite enjoyable.

2/12/2024 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Stunningly bad acidic pinot. Not much aromatically but the acid was way out of proportion and the fruit was muted, at best. Bought on Winebid, taken to Colombia, consumed at Aroma in Roldanillo. Sure transport and heat could have been an issue, but this wasn't really cooked. I have one more bottle and I'm scared to drink it.

1/24/2024 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Talk about a wow. PnP came across is rich ripe barely Nebbiolo but still enjoyable. One of 3 wines so no hurry. An hour later it had leaned out, the zin like fruit gone and it was a stripped down and ready to go Nebbiolo. Seldom does such a transition occur so seamlessly. I would love to buy more and never ever ever would I serve this to the high school girls looking to partay!

1/22/2024 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Good not great. A bit on the over ripe side and a bit bitter on the finish. Seemed like it might benefit from more time in bottle but not a repeat buy at ~$80-100. I know you pay for the fact that it comes from To Kalon, but there is just so much good wine out there this bottle didn't offer good QPR.

1/11/2024 - Barnaby33 wrote:

PnP, it burns! This is in the league of Behrens and Hitchcock, but with an acid burn. I can't decide if it's got VA bringing up the rear. I doubt this is a wine to age. Not bad just not my style, singed nose hairs and all.

1/1/2024 - Barnaby33 wrote:

PnP, good but not bloody brilliant. This bottle had more attenuated fruit and a bit more spikey acidity. Still a good drop, just not a jaw drop.

12/29/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

3 of 5, bought on Winebid. Better than the last bottle but fundamentally the same. Past it's prime, but still noticeable for a balance of fruit and tannin. Took this bottle to church and was very well received by the other parishioners.

12/23/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

PnP such a classic 01. What I mean by that is that the fruit is still there! It's absolutely on the back 40 of its life but by no means gone. Tannins have ameliorated and there actually was an acid kick. While not in perfect balance like most great 01s it's a tad out of balance in a way that just makes you pay attention more. If 02 is the Alta Sweet video you liked, this is the Sam Harris podcast that makes you think. This wine really does exemplify 01. Did it hit the tippy toppy of heights for fruit/tannin/acid balance, no. Was it a truly enjoyable wine that still offers immense pleasure and made my wife actually smile, yes!

12/8/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Opened at church for a not quite killer bar. Good but not great. The 99 Chabot opened the week before at church (a goodly percentage of which goes into the Private Reserve) was much better. This bottle had the feeling of being not well kept, yet came from the same large WineBid cellar as the Chabot.

11/24/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Good not great. Certainly not as rustic as expectations would have suggested. No hurry to consume, but little wow either.

11/22/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Sadly this bottle at least was past its prime. While still enjoyable the fruit came off as stewed and the flavors were muddled. It finished a bit bitter as well.

11/15/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

PnP bold beautiful fruit and some bubble gum and hints of clove on the nose. Fades some on the mid palette and a bit astringent on the finish. I'd drink this rather quickly as with an hour it became thinner and more astringent. Not dead but one to enjoy more quickly!

11/9/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Jeebus, do we all shop at the MV Costco? Friend brought one over last night and it was yuuuuuugge! With an hour of air and a glass in the gullet it settled down but this is a fruit driven monster! I wouldn't touch a bottle for 5 years. Bramble and boysenberry, some heat and heavy in weight.

10/28/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

If you're going to apologize to your fellow parishoners at church for bringing a Mexican wine to a Spanish tasting you could do worse than this cream sherry. Light on it's feat, nutty like a bual and still interesting.

10/10/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

PnP. The character of a warm year showed through early. For a Barolo the fruit came to the fore. With time the subtler earthy flavors came to dominate and tellingly the tannins came on as well. Still I had no problem consuming this bottle now. Young, yes and certainly will age a few more years. I suspect though that this and most 15s aren't long term wines.

6/29/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Beautiful nose, mostly cherry, some underbrush. Tannins became assertive after 10 mins and stayed so for the first hour, then settled down. A lovely wine from a warmer year.

6/22/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Very pretty nose, exuding pears which is rare for a cab. Also very oakey, to me I'm not sure there is enough structure for the long haul. The oak needs to fully integrate, but it was a good drop and good QPR.

6/2/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Open for bidness. No decant but no real attempts to taste until it was open for over an hour. After that a fairly light and spicy nose, medium body and a bit of assertive tannin. Still this is if not at peak, certainly it it's window.

The war dept loved it! Now that's, "mission accomplished!"

5/17/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

PnP. Needs more time. Weird to say it for an 11. Not giving up much on the nose, even after an hour. If only it weren't my last of 3.

5/10/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

A really nicely balanced wine, which for SA is quite a treat. Good fruit and nose in sympatico. Not at all over the top on fruit, even old Bordeaux lovers would get along with this wine.

Still as others have noted, not exactly great QPR, unless you want to surprise your Cab Franc hating friends (we all have a few!)

4/30/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

As the last reviewer said in 17, "Classic Hermitage nose of smoked meat, olives, Black fruit and violets." Second of two bottles. The acidity is still to sharp and there is an oxidative note, or maybe they just added a bit of viognier for more aromatics. The bright fruit was gorgeous but somehow the nose and palette just didn't come together quite right. Consumed too young perhaps?

Considering I just opened a corked Dead Arm 2 nights ago, the plastic cork isn't so bad!

4/12/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Holy horse noses Batman, there's a ton of brown sugar on the nose! I pray to whichever deity will answer me that this wine settles down as previous bottles have been marvelous!

3/28/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Ripe and sweet, though more brown sugar than strawberry. Peaches and brown sugar perhaps on the nose? On the palette flows through nicely with a bit of a tart finish, which is only a bit jarring given the sweetness on the attack.

After an hour the wine has integrated much more. Still the bitter note on the back of the palette, but the super sweet brown sugar + fruit has gone more towards raspberry. The nose presents overall as much more integrated and all together less sugary as does the palette.

3/19/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Needed almost an hour to open up. Nicely balanced cab with a variety of blue but mostly red fruits. Tannins did get more astringent as time went by. Good wine but not great QPR.

3/9/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

I probably shouldn't write this but it was bloody brilliant. Drank like an Astralis from a good year, but you know 1/3 the price.

3/9/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

This was ready to go for my palette. Other than losing bubbles very fast I truly enjoyed it. Melon, yeast and a bit of citrus. A bit on the rounder and richer side.

3/9/2023 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Ready to go. Not as rustic as I suspected. Nose was open for business almost immediately. Tannins are still there and did build some over an hour and an astringency (mild) also developed.

12/1/2022 - Barnaby33 wrote:

What he said -> One hour in the decanter. Quite open from the start: roses, iron and a pinch of cumin and spices. In the mouth very balanced.

The tannins were by no means fully resolved but they didn't come out on the attack like they have in a bunch of other 12 barolos.

To be fair this was opened with a 16 cab and 2 x 2012 Italians, so it didn't get my sole focus. I didn't get heat either. I'd say with the aforementioned air it's good to go.

11/13/2022 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Not offensive but not giving up much either. If you just need a white, this'll do donkey, this'll do.

My initial note was a bit hasty, the nose does come to give off a nice melon and honeysuckle note. On the palette the wine flows across with balance only being detracted by a small hole in the middle and a bit of a spikey / sweet acid note on the finish, which is a bit short.

8/20/2022 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Good for consumption now. Big ripe fruit and structure to match, but with a note of green that increases over time. I think this wine is at or just past it's peak, but very pleasurable now.

8/13/2022 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Gave it an hour of air. Utterly delicious! No hurry to drink, but already so much balance. The nose was dominated more by fruit and the palette by earth and minerality and spice.

7/17/2022 - Barnaby33 wrote:

The components were all there, but for $40 I thought I overpaid a bit. It lacked depth and or complexity. No hard edges but no wow either.

7/16/2022 - Barnaby33 wrote:

PnP and behaved as expected. Smooth tannins and nice fruit upon opening, tightening up over the next hour while being consumed. A lovely and balanced Barbaresco that was killed before it's time!

6/30/2022 - Barnaby33 wrote:

It completes surprise to the downside. It's green on the nose and it's green on the pallet. It doesn't quite come across as hot but it's certainly is not a good example of mclaren Vale or of dead arm.

6/26/2022 - Barnaby33 wrote:

The older the wine, the gooder the wine. Brought a smile to my wife's face though, so I've got that going for me. When she asked me where it was, I said, near Jasper Hill.

After an hour the wine has opened up, or maybe still is. Dark berries, very smooth, just a hint of stem, not hot. On the palette the remaining fruit is added by tannins and acid that while not merged aid each other to give an overall sour kick. It definitely doesn't show it's age in this regard. More that the fruit is or has bowed out and the structure is doing more of the heavy lifting. Interestingly not a strong eucalyptus note. If it is there it's quite subdued.

5/25/2022 - Barnaby33 wrote:

As anyone in my wine circle can attest, I detest CdP. Grenache from Sardigna however expresses itself often times beautifully. This bottle is one such. You don't have to spend time contemplating this wine, but you can. It's well balanced not over oaked and not over priced! On the nose I detected a bit of anise, my wife got blackberry, but neither of us got grapefruit or creosote. Over the hour or two of drinking (with dinner) the tannins definitely became more assertive the fruit a bit more muted. It never got out of hand. For the price a total re-buy!

5/6/2022 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Nose open for bidness, palette still a bit shut down. This could just be the house style in a cooler year. Still an enjoyable drink, but a bit austere for a grand cru.

4/9/2022 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Took to church, decanted an hour early. Medium bodied Spatlese, instantly notable as Riesling just from a whiff. Notes of green apple and lemon, married to a sweetness that didn't move the wines perceived weight. Acidity built over the 2 hours it was open and warmed up. Delicious and in my mind ready to go.

3/20/2022 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Took an hour to open up. Lovely mature wine dominated by fruit but still with some tannin and acid to frame it.

2/9/2022 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Good to go. By today's standards downright elegant and a good value for Napa.

1/23/2022 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Winning! This is my style of wine. The oak is still there but so is the fruit. Tannins have mellowed and yes they are definitely in the minority but play a wonderful supporting role. I pray to dog that my other bottles have this much balance. The fruit is sweet, even a bit candied but nothing is over the top. Definitely not a wine to serve to the girls, looking to partay!

1/21/2022 - Barnaby33 wrote:

Still going pretty strong, good but not great. This bottle had a touch of spiky acidity and the tannins came on stronger over the 2 hours we enjoyed it. A 98 with a tannic kick like a 96. Fruit took 30 minutes to integrate with air and there was a bit of a menthol note around the edges.